NAUgo
A mobile app created to meet the needs of the student and the university.
NAUgo
Problem
Students need a mobile-friendly solution and the university doesn’t have one. Specifically students need easy access to academic information such as their class schedule, bills, upcoming registration, and appointments with advisors. They need dining and shuttle info, and to be able to log their work hours on the go.
Pain Points
Keeping your ID accessible for every shuttle bus is troublesome.
People's need for specific foods due to allergies.
The interaction of paying bills on a mobile app can be much easier.
It's a hassle to be at your desktop to register for classes.
Logging in and out of a job time-clock needs to be easy.
Goal
Provide students with easy, on-the-go access to essential academic and campus information, improving student life and retention.
Streamline the student experiences of managing schedules, registration, and advising appointments.
Improve usability of campus systems, like dining and shuttle tracking, by consolidating information into one mobile platform.
Increase student engagement with campus resources through event notifications such as for job fairs, concerts and sports.
User Studies
“As a busy nursing student, my life is hectic! I need quick access to everything NAU-related on my phone – transportation schedules, important deadlines, and my account information. Juggling classes, clinicals, and studying doesn't leave much downtime. I'm definitely someone who prefers to plan and organize quietly behind the scenes. My biggest pet peeves? Not being able to handle payments or see crucial updates on the go, and wrestling with clunky websites on my phone. I just want a streamlined way to stay on track without feeling overwhelmed.”
Goal
Accurately and efficiently stay on top of to-dos.
Challenges
Make payments, notifications of registration and transportation tasks from anywhere.
Website info is not mobile friendly.
Feeling frustrated they don't have enough time to stay organized outside of classes and clinical.
Approach
We began by conducting user research through student interviews and surveys to identify key pain points. This research informed the creation of user personas and journey maps, allowing me to understand typical mobile usage scenarios. To ensure accessibility and clarity, I prioritized mobile-first UI/UX design principles. We then prototyped core functionalities, including schedule viewing, bill tracking, advisor appointments, dining options, shuttle times, and clocking in/out. Finally, we planned to iterate based on feedback and conducted usability tests with real students before the application's launch.
Research
Identified routine student tasks, researched existing university apps, surveyed students for pain points, and analyzed competitors to understand the landscape and potential solutions.
Ideate
Developed information architecture based on research findings, brainstormed streamlined solutions, and designed user flows to address identified student needs and improve efficiency.
Prototype
Created lo-fi and hi-fi prototypes for key features like course enrollment, class calendars, and payment systems, iterated on designs based on testing and analysis.
Collaborate
Worked closely with the design team and other stakeholders to implement designs, address technical feasibility, and ensure a cohesive user experience.
Test
Future plans to conduct second-phase testing and analysis, gather feedback on prototypes, and iterate on designs to refine the mobile app based on user interactions and data.
UX Metrics Used
App adoption rate among students.
Task success rate for key features.
Reduction in Help Desk inquiries related to scheduling, billing, or shuttle times.
Student satisfaction scores from post-launch surveys and in-app feedback.
Driving high adoption and usage
Since the redesign and rerelease of the app in August 2018, NAUgo has been downloaded over 40,000 times. The app’s current daily average number of unique users is 25,000.
Performance Indicators
A unified mobile app designed specifically for student needs—offering class schedules, billing info, registration updates, advisor appointments, dining menus, shuttle tracking, and job time-logging all in one place. The intuitive design made frequently used tools accessible in just a few taps.
Using built-in analytics, NAU tracks its app adoption and usage metrics. Every month, it presents year-over-year numbers to the app’s steering committee, comprising representatives from Student Affairs, Marketing, Advising, and Accessibility, to name a few.
Solution
One app, multiple wins
Centralizing campus services in one mobile app significantly improved convenience and reduced student frustration.
Mobile first = User first
Designing for mobile from the start ensured usability in real-life, on-the-go situations.
Real student feedback shaped the best features
Ongoing testing with students helped prioritize the features that mattered most.
The app drove real change
Adoption and task success metrics proved the app improved student access to key services and enhanced their overall experience.
Key Takeaways
Contribution
Collaborators
Heather Lobrigo
Payment feature:
mockups, UX flow, prototypes
Andrea Stockl Gerosa
Work Clock/Time Sheet feature:
mockups, UX flow, prototypes
Patricia Allenbaugh
Founder Modo App, Project Manager
Jason Robinson
Native App Founder, Project Manager
My Contribution
Features
Course enrollment
Class calendar
Dining
Research
UX survey
Competitor research
Ideation
Information architecture
Streamlined solutions survey
Data analysis
Sketches
Design
Flow chart
Mockups
Lo-fi & Hi-fi prototyping
Supplemental Images
NAUgo Mobile app for Students
Academic Enrollment
Search class, Choose class, Register class,
View class schedule, Grades
Transportation
View buses in real time
Use phone as bus ID
Dining
View options, hours, locations, nutrition
TimeClock
Clock In/Out seamlessly
Make a payment
Pay bills fees easily on your phone anytime
NAU XD Team
Early Prototypes
Students were getting a less than optimum disjointed slow desktop experience across departments.
Before
I redesigned the dining app for NAUgo, incorporating relevant information and Material Design UI heuristics to enhance the student experience and improve their daily lives.
After
Next
Time Timer App